Loving V. Virginia, Introduction, Facts, Legal Background

to the same degree. Thus, ... because its miscegenation statutes punish equally both the white and the Negro participants in an interracial marriage, these statutes, ... do not constitute an invidious discrimination based upon race.

Virginia do all this, but it also had some many unforeseen impacts in the future, as well. For example, similar anti-miscegenation laws in about 15 other states were eventually overturned like Virginia’s marriage ban. In the case Goodridge v. Department of Public Health in the November of 2003, a similar case to Loving v. Virginia, the restrictions on marriage were argued yet again. However, instead of interracial marriage being the problem, it was same-sex partners who were unable to wed. Like the case for the Lovings, the Supreme Court eventually ruled against the ban on members of the LGBTQ community marrying, as it was also deemed

The Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia (1967) resulted in the striking down of state laws that prohibited whites and African Americans from marrying. Mildred Loving, one of the parties in the case, issued a statement on the fortieth-anniversary of her case in which she urged that same-sex couples be allowed to marry.

With the growing racial unrest sweeping the U.S., and particularly the South in the 1960s, The Supreme Court decided that the protections of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution applied equally to blacks and the whites that loved them. The Loving vs. Virginia case ended the abominable assumption that the state has a right to intrude upon the private lives and affections of its citizens, to the point of dictating to them who they were allowed to love.

In the year 1924, in the state of Virginia, the Racial Integrity Act was put into law (See Appendix C). There is a very rich and mindful history on why this law was passed. In fact, it was not the first-time Virginia prohibited marriage between races. This was done when Virginia was one of the thirteen colonies. This law banning all inter-racial marriage was first passed in 1691. Also, that by 1913 30 out of the 48 states at the time had a law like this. Also during that time of the passage a group called Anglo-Saxon Clubs of America that lobbied for this bill to be

Justice Warren in the unanimous opinion of the Court, states that the anti-miscegenation statutes cannot stand constituently with the Fourteenth Amendment and violated equal protection. Virginia argued that its miscegenation statutes punished both white and black participants in an interracial marriage equally and served the legitimate state purpose of preserving the “racial integrity” of its citizens by referencing the decision in Naim v. Naim, 197 Va. 80, 87 S.E.2d 749 (1955). The Court rejected the Virginia’s contention and stated: “The clear and central purpose of the Fourteenth Amendment was to eliminate all official state sources of invidious racial discrimination in the States.” The “equal application” argument put forward by Virginia

Virginia and the secret History of Race” was an article written by Brent Staples (2008) explaining the background and case of the Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia.The case involved a interracial couple, Mildred and Richard Loving, that were being told that their marriage was not legal in the county they lived in. The loving had gotten married in Washington D.C. where they knew their marriage would be legal but once they moved back to their hometown in Caroline County Va, the true horrors of the south came known. The lovings were being shunned and discriminated against by the entire county because they were a black and white couple. The article then goes on to talk about the horrible reality of Jim Crow Laws and other discrimination the couple faced just for being

A case is said to be landmark when it produces a precedent that is regarded as law by jurists during other cases. These cases are seen as such, generally, because they change the direction of the people making the laws and sitting on the courts, and forge a new path for justice which is more often than not seen as a perfection of the law. One such case occurred in Loving v. The Commonwealth of Virginia in 1967. The original complaint was made in 1958 during a time when the State of Virginia, which is considered deeply ingrained in the attitudes of the South though parts have largely Northern sympathies, still had laws on the books which discriminated substantially against minorities, especially Black citizens. The law in question did not allow two people of different races to marry because as a justice in a lower court ruled

On June 2, 1958 Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving went to Washington D.C. to get married and they went back to Virginia a few days later. But because Mildred was of African-American and Native American decent, and Richard was white they were arrested for violating the state law that prohibits interracial marriage. At the time, Virginia was one of 17 states, including Texas and Alabama, that had laws prohibiting interracial marriage (Wolfe). The Supreme Court Case Loving v. Virginia is an important of part of American history that has had a huge impact on racial equality and has helped change the definition of marriage in the United States forever.

Loving versus Virginia is cased based on racial discrimination. A case is set in the 1950s where interracial marriages was still taboo. The state of Virginia had a law in place that made interracial marriages a felony. Which in turn Loving and his wife took their case to Supreme Court to seek justice for themselves and others, and their state’s law called into question. This case the Fourteenth Amendment was brought into play and the right to Equal Protection and Due Process clauses.

The prosecution in Loving v. Virginia had to display their reasoning for their holding by under the levels of scrutiny in the Equal Protection Clause. The defense had to prove there was inconsistent levels of scrutiny, a lack of compelling governmental interest, and that marriage was a fundamental right. Once proven, the institution of marriage, licensing, and recognition of interracial couples was Constitutionally protected.

Virginia was another difficult case to solve for the Supreme Court. During this case, Virginia had released a series of laws making it illegal to marry other races; the penalties were grave. Once the people had looked over the details, they then realized that the laws punished everyone participating in it. The State argued that "because its miscegenation statutes punished both white and black participants in an interracial marriage equally, they cannot be said to constitute invidious discrimination based on race and, therefore, the statutes commanded mere rational basis review" (Loving vs. Virginia). This case had moved more people to support the civil rights movement due to the unfair treatment being

Virginia case consisted of a black and white couple that were married outside of the state. They came to virginia to live there life when they were accused of committing a crime against the law stating black and white people cannot get married. The plead guilty because yes they were in fact married. They were originally sentenced to one year in prison. Later they were given the opportunity to leave the state. Bernard S. Cohen (who was representing the lovings)"... filed a motion in the Caroline County Circuit Court to vacate their 1959 conviction for violating the state law that forbids interracial marriage. He also asks that the two one-year suspended sentences be set aside." as Encyclopedia Virginia put it. That though was in 1963, In 1967 the supreme court unanimously rules out the law as a violation of the fourteenth amendment. That was the ending of the Loving v. Virginia case. I was surprised about this case I believe some aspects of it are in our lives

They should not get marry and mix. The couple spent several years to appeal to higher court to pursuit justice. The Supreme Court decided that this prohibition was unconstitutional, overruling Pace v. Alabama (1883) and ending all race-based legal restrictions on marriage in the United States. Loving v. Virginia 388 U.S. 1 (1967), is a landmark for the United States Supreme Court to protect civil rights, which invalidated Pace v. Alabama (1883), the Supreme Court ruled laws prohibiting interracial marriage, as a violation of the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause. It defended the spirit of the Declaration of Independence, people are created equal, no matter their color, and they have the equal right to pursuit their freedom and happiness. Loving v. Virginia legalized interracial marriage, and government can’t deprive this right. Furthermore, it effects the same-sex marriage case Obergefell v.

-In 1967 in the Loving v. Virginia case, the US Supreme Court struck down all laws prohibiting interracial marriages.